Amidst reports that actor-turned-politician Khushbu Sundar will join the BJP today in New Delhi, the Congress spokesperson has quit the party.
In a letter addressed to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Khushbu stated that she did not walk into the party for any monetary gains, name or fame.
She wrote, "I came into the fold of INC at the time when it was at its lowest, being defeated in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. I did not walk into the party for any monetary gains, name or fame,” she wrote.
She claimed that she was 'pushed and suppressed' in Congress.
Khushbu said, “Few elements seated at higher level within the party, people who have no connectivity with the ground reality or public recognition are dictating terms and people like me who wanted to work for the party sincerely, are being pushed and suppressed.”
The actor said she had decided to end her association with the Congress party after a long thorough thought process over a period of time and said she was resigning from the primary membership of the Indian National Congress. She also thanked Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and everyone at the party personally.
A BJP party source told TNIE that Khushbu will join the party in presence of the party's national president JP Nadda today. The party’s State president L Murugan has been camping in New Delhi since Saturday.
For a month now, speculation has been rife that Khushbu might join the BJP. Some of her tweets in recent months were seen as a signal to the saffron party that her attitude towards the party had changed.
On Sunday evening, ahead of boarding a flight to Delhi, Khushbu declined to answer the questions from reporters. Asked whether she was joining the BJP, she said, “No comments.”
Khushbu joined the Congress in 2014, having earlier been a member of the DMK from 2010.
Born in a Muslim family in Mumbai, Khushbu was one of the most popular Tamil film stars in the 1990s. At the peak of her career, fans even dedicated a temple to her. She moved on to act in television serials and is also a popular television presenter.
(With inputs from T Muruganandham)